And so it begins...
Daniel is gone. Daniel has been an incredible help this year. Over the last few seasons Daniel has come and worked with us. During that time he has become quite proficient at everything and this year he fearlessly stepped into some significant management roles. By the time he left, I (Joel) could more or less hand over all of the day to day operations. From assessing the work, prioritizing jobs, and getting them done, to more complex problem solving and strategizing, he now has enough skill and experience to run this ship. And let me tell you, he does a good job. There were many times when I would come to the farm to deal with something only to find that Daniel had seen the issue as well and already dealt with it. But not only does he make the right decisions, he can also clearly articulate what he did and why. A worker who works smart, solves issues, and communicates clearly is worth his weight in gold. And did I mention he can takes care of my daughters too? You couldn't ask for better help. Dependable should be his middle name.
Our season is more then half way through but there is still a lot of work to accomplish. In the last few weeks before Daniel left we let a few things slide in order to finish some important projects. One of the most difficult tasks when starting a business or a farm is prioritizing work and specifically finding the balance between running the business and growing the business. Because we knew Daniel was leaving we pushed hard to get some key things in place before he left. Those things had to be in place if we were going to keep up with the work after he left. But in order to meet that deadline some things fell through the cracks.
Now he is gone and it is up to Corinne and I to pick up the pieces and pull things back together. But we are tired. After all, it is August. The CSA season may be over half way done, but we were pushing for weeks before that to prep ground and get crops growing. Farming is a marathon, not a sprint. Sometimes uou just gotta keep moving.
We have accomplished a lot this year and improved many things. But we are not on the downhill side yet.
Thanks to everyone for supporting us and encouraging us through this season. It takes a long time to start a business/farm.
This week in your share you will find a gift from our flower and herb genius, Corinne. It is called Tulsi (or Holy) Basil. It's fragrance is heavenly and it makes a great tea herb, helping to support the immune system and reduce stress. Use it fresh, or hang it up to dry in a dry room out of direct sunlight until the leaves are crunchy. Then crumble the leaves away from the stems and store the dried leaves in a jar for later use. The dried Tulsi tea leaves will keep for about a year. Use about 1 tsp dried herb with 1 cup boiling water for tea. The fresh leaves could be plunged in a quart or gallon jar of water and then left to sit in the sun for a day for Tulsi sun tea. Strain and chill and serve iced, and sweeten if you like.
Enjoy,
The ATF Crew
